The Immigration bureau barred more than 2,300 foreigners, mostly Chinese nationals, from entering the Philippines during the first half of the year in line with the government’s campaign to stop the entry of undesirable aliens.
In a report to Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, port operations division chief Grifton Medina said a total of 2,351 aliens of various nationalities were denied entry in different ports of the country.
Most of these foreigners were prevented at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport while the others were stopped at the airports in Mactan, Clark, Kalibo, Aklan and Davao.
“They were turned back after undergoing primary and secondary inspection by our immigration officers and were declared unfit for admission into our country for a variety of reasons. They were issued exclusion orders and booked on the first available flight to their ports of origin,” Medina said.
Morente commended BI port personnel for their accomplishments even as he stressed that the sovereign right of every country like the Philippines can deny entry to aliens deemed as undesirable and inadmissible.
He reminded his men “not to relax your guard and be always vigilant in discharging their duties as gatekeepers of our country.”
Statistics from the BI-POD’s travel control and enforcement show that 1,129 Chinese nationals topped the list of excluded aliens, followed by 106 Indians, 87 Americans, 52 Taiwanese, and 67 Koreans.
The list includes registered sex offenders, wanted fugitives, suspected international terrorists, and blacklisted and previously deported aliens.
Most the aliens that were excluded were without visible means to support themselves, and whose purpose of coming here are doubtful.
Some were turned back for being rude and disrespectful towards immigration officers, and for having incomplete travel documents.
“Our immigration officers are working hard day and night to protect our borders from these threats,” said Morente.
“We are serious in our drive against illegal aliens, and we are doing the best so we can to stop them from entering the country,” he added.
Morente likewise clarified that they “are not targeting specific nationalities,” but are instead “targeting illegal and undocumented individuals who try to enter the Philippines”.
According to Morente, those who were excluded for being threats to public order and safety will be barred from re-entering the country.